Seaside Heights to Rebuild Its Historic Boardwalk by Memorial Day

Seaside Heights, which boasts one of the most famous boardwalks on the East Coast, is in the process of rebuilding its oceanfront promenade, which was destroyed last October by Hurricane Sandy. This week, the beach community was awarded a $3.6 million contract to complete reconstruction of the boardwalk and substructure beneath it just in time to draw back summer tourism revenue by Memorial Day weekend.

Shore residents are anxious to have their beloved beachfront back, as it currently remains off-limits, guarded by police and state troopers for safety reasons. The boardwalk was not the only Seaside Heights attraction to be displaced by the strong hurricane winds: the Jet Star roller coaster plunged off a collapsing pier during the storm. Officials are worried about liability for the coaster, which remains submerged in waves, if someone is injured on or near it.

Seaside Heights’ will be the second major boardwalk to see rebuilding begin and the construction will serve as an important first step to getting this beachfront community and their visitors back to onto its shore to enjoy the ocean. It still remains to be seen whether New Jersey will stick to the traditional Ipe wood it’s used in the past for the new boardwalk or swap the material for more sustainable concrete imitations like Mayor Bloomberg called for in New York.